"Yo-Yos" w/ Liam Benzvi

Summary

Podcast Summary: StraightioLab Episode "Yo-Yos" featuring Liam Benzvi

Release Date: May 6, 2025
Hosts: George Severis and Sam Taggart
Guest: Liam Benzvi

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Introduction

The episode opens with a brief exchange between hosts George Severis and Sam Taggart, setting a humorous tone as they navigate their disdain for the spring season. They express their preference for summer but lament the overcrowded tourist season, leading them to value the quieter periods of late spring and early fall more.

Notable Quote:

• Sam Taggart [02:30]: "I'm so glad you asked. Least favorite season by far."

Guest Introduction: Liam Benzvi

George and Sam eagerly introduce Liam Benzvi, celebrating his return as a musician on the show. They engage in light-hearted banter about previous musician guests and express excitement about Liam's presence.

Notable Quote:

• George Severis [07:14]: "I can’t even remember."

Navigating Music Culture and "Coolness"

The conversation delves into the complexities of adolescent music preferences and the societal hierarchy of "cool." Liam shares his experiences growing up in a preppy school where mainstream bands like Dave Matthews Band were considered "cool," while he gravitated towards groups like Evanescence.

Notable Quotes:

• Liam Benzvi [07:38]: "So I haven't done that since."
• George Severis [13:17]: "The cool kids were listening to Dave Matthews Band, and it was cool that they knew what that was."

Cultural Shifts: New York vs. Minneapolis

Liam discusses his decision to attend college in Minneapolis, highlighting the cultural shock from New York City's vibrant scene to a more subdued environment. He reflects on unlearning his New York persona to adapt to Minneapolis life and the subsequent challenge of reintegrating into New York afterward.

Notable Quote:

• Liam Benzvi [17:49]: "So I did this kind of like, personality 180 for four years and kind of like, unlearned everything that I had built up in New York for credibility."

Reviving Analog Hobbies and Masculinity Crisis

The trio explores the resurgence of analog hobbies among men, such as yo-yos and ball-and-cup games, juxtaposed with the modern crisis in masculinity. They critique how these activities often serve as performative gestures rather than genuine expressions of interest.

Notable Quotes:

• George Severis [34:17]: "It’s the intersection of so much stuff around the crisis in masculinity."
• Liam Benzvi [32:18]: "So, you have the return to analog, it's a sort of, you know, vinyl resurgence adjacent type thing."

Fashion and Class Analysis

A substantial portion of the discussion centers on fashion, particularly the dichotomy between "quiet luxury" and "loud wealth." They analyze how affluent individuals use fashion to signal status while marginalizing those from less privileged backgrounds. The conversation also touches on the challenges of authentic self-expression in fashion without falling into societal gatekeeping.

Notable Quotes:

• Liam Benzvi [38:52]: "I think a lot of them are rich kids. And I feel like if you're rich, it's your responsibility to flaunt it and be like a dandy."
• George Severis [39:53]: "Because you don't. It is like a."

Shifting Landscape of Music and Gatekeeping

The hosts discuss the ongoing gatekeeping in the music industry, especially concerning LGBTQ+ artists. They lament the lack of representation and the dominance of certain artists that overshadow emerging talents. There’s a call for more inclusive support to allow diverse voices to flourish.

Notable Quotes:

• Liam Benzvi [60:36]: "I still think there's a lot of homophobia in music in a way where, like, gay guys don't want to see other gay guys succeed."
• George Severis [61:34]: "Because, I mean, who was the last gay guy to choose Target? Elton John."

Creative Expressions and Fidgeting Trends

The discussion shifts to creative expressions and fidgeting trends among men. They critique the modern fidgeting habits as a facade masking deeper insecurities and a lack of genuine self-expression. The idea of inventing new fidgeting tools tailored to the LGBTQ+ community is humorously proposed.

Notable Quotes:

• Sam Taggart [50:14]: "Imagine if that was my thing."
• George Severis [50:53]: "We should bring those back."

Shout Outs and Final Thoughts

In the concluding segment, "Shout Outs," the hosts and Liam pay homage to things and people they appreciate. George emphasizes the importance of substance in communications, while Sam highlights the value of physical therapy in personal well-being. Liam enthusiastically promotes his latest musical projects.

Notable Quotes:

• George Severis [72:15]: "If you open your mouth, try to say something with substance rather than without substance."
• Sam Taggart [73:25]: "Shout out to my physical therapy."

Conclusion

The episode wraps up with humorous and candid exchanges among the hosts and guest, reinforcing the podcast’s commitment to dissecting straight culture with intellectual humor. They express gratitude towards listeners and promote their respective projects, maintaining an engaging and entertaining atmosphere throughout.

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Overall Insights:

• Cultural Hierarchies: Exploration of how societal perceptions of "coolness" influence individual identity and preferences.
• Masculinity and Self-Expression: Analysis of modern masculinity crises and the role of analog hobbies in navigating these challenges.
• Fashion as a Status Symbol: Discussion on the interplay between fashion, class, and authenticity in self-expression.
• Gatekeeping in Music: Concerns about representation and support for LGBTQ+ artists within the mainstream music industry.
• Creative Fidgeting: Critique of contemporary fidgeting trends as lacking genuine purpose and suggesting tailored alternatives for LGBTQ+ communities.

Concluding Thought:
The episode "Yo-Yos" adeptly weaves humor with critical analysis, offering listeners a reflective yet entertaining examination of various facets of straight culture through the lens of comedians and a musician guest.

Transcript

[George Severis]

You're listening to an iHeart podcast.

[Sam Taggart]

With PayPal.

[George Severis]

I can pay now or pay in four. No interest and no fees. Now feast your ears on this prime cut musical meat. You can pay your own way. Don't just pay PayPal. Subject to approval eligibility. Parents learn [e-mail] PayInFor Lowe's helps refresh.

[Liam Bensby]

Your garden in time for Mother's Day.

[George Severis]

Right now, get five bags of one.

[Liam Bensby]

And a half cubic foot Scott's Naturescapes mulch for just $10 plus select one and a half gallon annuals. Hanging baskets make the perfect gift. Now two for only $15. The best garden starts with great deals.

[Sam Taggart]

Lowes.

[Liam Bensby]

We help you Save. Valid through 5 7. Selection varies by location while supplies last. Discount taken at time of purchase.

[George Severis]

The best moments happen when you're with.

[Liam Bensby]

Your people, laughing, vibing and just enjoying life.

[George Severis]

Coke is making those moments even sweeter. Share a Coke is back and it's.

[Liam Bensby]

All about sharing with the whole crew.

[George Severis]

Doesn't matter if it's your bestie or.

[Liam Bensby]

Bro, there's a can with their name on it. So grab one for the squad and make some memories.

[George Severis]

But hurry, because these Coca Cola limited.

[Liam Bensby]

Edition bottles and cans won't be here forever.

[George Severis]

Don't miss your chance to share a.

[Colby Ekowitz]

Coke with all your favorite people. We've all done it. You see a headline but don't have time to read the whole story. Or there's so much news you're not sure what is worth your time. I'm Colby Ekowitz, co host of Post Reports, the weekday afternoon podcast from the Washington Post. Post Reports brings you what's relevant and revealing. Breaking stories, politics, wellness, culture. Each episode goes beyond a headline for the context you need. Find Post Reports now. Wherever you're listening.

[Sam Taggart]

Podcast starts now. What's up, everyone around the world. This is Stratio Lab. It is a cloudy.

[George Severis]

Is it cloudy?

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, it's cloudy as hell. I mean, maybe it's my la sensibility where, you know, I see a little cloud now and I say, oh God, it's cloudy. But I would argue it is cloudy outside.

[George Severis]

What do you think of spring?

[Sam Taggart]

I'm so glad you asked. Least favorite season by far.

[George Severis]

Flop.

[Sam Taggart]

Loser. I think spring is a prison sentence.

[George Severis]

Yeah? Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

I think it's edging in the worst way. I think you never feel joy until May. And I think I remember just looking at the leaves and being like, go faster.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Okay, here's my opinion. You know, you and I, one of the things we have in common is that we're both summer Girls, to quote Danielle Heim. And I think. And we come alive in the summer. We are both beachy. We both love a pool. We both love reading by a body of water. And, of course, that part of me is still there.

[Sam Taggart]

You're getting choked up just thinking about it.

[George Severis]

I'm getting choked up just thinking about it. Um, I. More and more, the summer peak tourist season is, like, peaking more than it ever has, to the point where I'm afraid to do anything summery in the actual months of July and August. And that has actually forced me to start valuing late spring and early fall more.

[Sam Taggart]

I know exactly what you mean.

[George Severis]

And it is confusing to me because when I now think of July and August, normally my favorite months, I. I'm feeling a sense of entrapment. I am feeling a sense of, you know, sort of like, hope deferred, like it will never be what it once was. And I have to start romanticizing late May, early June, and in fact, mid September.

[Sam Taggart]

I say yes to mid September. Yeah, late May, early June, it's going to be chilly. Like, it's just like. You can't be at a beach and be comfortable. You think so? I literally think so, yes. Sometimes you'll get, like, the off day. But, like, I have tried for years to be like, summer starts June 1st, and I have been burned by being cold so many times because it doesn't start June 1st. It starts, like, June 30th, which is my birthday.

[George Severis]

But don't you find that when you are planning something for peak summer months. I don't know. Maybe I just need to be more bold and be like, you know what? I am gonna be one of the bodies that is crowding a fire island.

[Sam Taggart]

George, you cannot be afraid to take up space.

[George Severis]

Really.

[Sam Taggart]

I think you really have to lean into. I hear you. Your desire to be alt is pushing over your desire to have fun and be in a nice place. But you just have to. You know my theory on Mondays.

[George Severis]

What is it?

[Sam Taggart]

That even if you're on vacation on a Monday, it's still a Monday, and you can't break free from the Monday feeling.

[George Severis]

And you're saying even if I'm on vacation in May, it's still May, and I can't break free of the May thing, literally. Okay, so you're sort of following a more literal approach, a more formalist. It's like, May is May, July is Friday. Men are men, women are women.

[Sam Taggart]

You know that's not what I'm saying, George. You know that's not what I'm Saying, july is Friday.

[George Severis]

Yeah. And.

[Sam Taggart]

And you have to be like, well, it's Friday. I'm going to the beach.

[George Severis]

I guess.

[Sam Taggart]

You'Re not convinced.

[George Severis]

You know, what I'm bumping up against is, like, there are only so many months, and it really saddens me that we'll never get new ones. You know what I mean? I'm not getting what I want out of the existing months. And it should, you would think, in the world we're living in, with so much innovation in the fields of science, technology, et cetera, you could invent a new month that is perfect. And it's both the perfect weather and not crowded. George, don't you think it exists? What is it?

[Sam Taggart]

It's international travel.

[George Severis]

Oh, you're saying, okay, go to Australia.

[Sam Taggart]

I'm literally saying, go to Australia, Go to South America, go to Mexico. I think this was what I was starting to feel in New York, where I was like, the way that summer, I need every waking second to be the best second of my life was starting to be problematic. I couldn't sustain that. I was getting disappointed because some seconds were bad. And then I was like, wait, what if I started taking trips more? Which I didn't do. I didn't get to live up to that, unfortunately. But it's still. I have the solution all planned out.

[George Severis]

So it's spending money. Well, okay, so classically, you want something. What's the solution? Being able to afford it, quite literally. All right, should we bring in our guest?

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, do the honors, please.

[George Severis]

Okay. We are so excited to have him on. You know, we haven't had a musician on in so long. What was the last one we had on?

[Sam Taggart]

You can't ask me.

[George Severis]

I can't even remember.

[Sam Taggart]

Have we ever had one on?

[George Severis]

Oh, my God. The first musician we've ever met, Liam Bensby. Hello. How's it going?

[Liam Bensby]

It's great. I'm so happy to be here.

[George Severis]

Oh, my God. We are so happy to have you. How is. What do you think about the months?

[Liam Bensby]

Well, yeah, while I was listening, I was thinking about. There was, like, one year where I insisted on going to the beach immediately on June 1st. But it was very like, I have an eating disorder. I need to, like, bike here every single day. Or, like, I. It was, like, very. Something's going on in my head.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

I'm dealing with something.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

So I haven't done that since.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

But I almost think the disappointment of the first beach day is, like, good to tamper down your expectations. It's like, it humbles you. And then you can enjoy summer. It's almost like an initiation ritual where the first beach day has to be a little bit like, oh, wait, this is what we've been waiting. This is what we've been looking forward to. And then the second time you go, you're like, all right, I'll bring a book. It'll be fine.

[Sam Taggart]

You know what I did last year, that was a huge mistake, which is why I feel so passionate about this now, is I did all my little trips in June. From June 1 to June 30, I was doing little trips and all of them were cloudy and bad. And it was like, of course I shouldn't have tried to do them all in June. What was I thinking? Start in July.

[Liam Bensby]

Are you the type of person that has something planned to do or do you kind of revel in the nothing of vacation?

[Sam Taggart]

I revel in the nothing of vacation.

[Liam Bensby]

I think it's me too.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. It's actually really stressful to me because now all the trips I've ever gone on have been like, to Fire Island.

[George Severis]

Oh my God, we're being interrupted. I said I did not want this to happen. Thank you.

[Sam Taggart]

Wow. This is the best day of my life. Thank you.

[George Severis]

Oh my God. To have blue bottle coffee.

[Sam Taggart]

Thank you. Oh my gosh. Thank you.

[George Severis]

Oh my God. Cheers, you guys. Cheers.

[Liam Bensby]

Seriously, you guys, putting the iced coffee in the paper cup is a flex.

[George Severis]

I actually want to know what you think about that because this is something I've noticed more and more and I can't decide if I find it almost chic. There is something a little like businesswoman about it or if I find it to be absolutely morally abhorrent. Because that doesn't go there.

[Liam Bensby]

It's kind of like a school uniform.

[George Severis]

Yeah, yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Like everybody the same.

[George Severis]

Yeah. And then sometimes they'll put a straw inside the sippy cup.

[Sam Taggart]

Uh huh. I'm kind of anti.

[George Severis]

You're anti.

[Sam Taggart]

I don't think these cups were made for this. And I think it's a poor reflection on the cups. It makes me feel like the cup is doing a bad job when really it's just not made for us. Okay.

[George Severis]

So I'm noticing a pattern. I think today with you is that you think things are made for what they're made for and you think there should be no experimentation, there should be no innovation. If someone, you know, goes on vacation in May or if someone puts iced coffee in a hot coffee cup, you are calling 911 and you are saying, thank God you are well funded because I Need you here today.

[Sam Taggart]

I need you here asap. I think experimentation can happen. You know, I think every coffee place should have a sense of play. You know, I think this.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

But that being said, once you experiment and you find out, like, oh, that didn't really work as well as I thought it would, then you go back, and then you say, okay, that was a fun little journey. I'll never go on vacation in June again.

[George Severis]

But isn't sort of punk rock, DIY culture kind of finding the beauty in the imperfect?

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, my God. Literally. No, it's not.

[Liam Bensby]

What's the most punk month?

[George Severis]

Ooh.

[Sam Taggart]

Whoa. Whoa.

[George Severis]

Fuck.

[Liam Bensby]

Wow.

[George Severis]

All right. What is the most punk month?

[Sam Taggart]

Well, I think my brain jumps to a colder month, but I do think, like, October has Halloween, of course, and there's sort of the, like, people put out decorations. Decorations.

[George Severis]

No, October is like Avril Lavigne being punk.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, I think she's valid.

[George Severis]

Do you think Avril Lavigne is valid as a punk? Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Or valid in general?

[George Severis]

I think.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. I mean, I was a big head back in the day. My stepdad, a long time ago, worked at Good Morning America when I was a kid, and he would bring me to, like, the 7am concerts. So I got to, like, kind of make signs and, like, meet a lot of my idols at the time, and she was one of them, and I got to make her a sign. It was really cool.

[Sam Taggart]

That's so cool.

[George Severis]

But here's a question for you, because I also, of course, as a young gay kid, loved Avril Lavigne, but it was not allowed to, like. Like, you were not allowed to love Avril Lavigne.

[Liam Bensby]

Says who?

[George Severis]

It was not. It was not cool.

[Sam Taggart]

It's like, look who's conservative now.

[George Severis]

It.

[Liam Bensby]

The arbiters of cool.

[George Severis]

Did you feel like you could openly love Avril Lavigne?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

You did? Okay.

[Liam Bensby]

Cause I felt like I was young enough or it was like, Avril Lavigne. Well, it was okay for me to do that because I was also a huge psycho obsessed with the Strokes person when I was younger. So I had that kind of, like, tipping the scale. You had that going for you. Altness that I could, like. I could fall back into Avril if I needed to.

[George Severis]

Every alt thing. Every real alt thing you like, you collect Avril Lavigne coins, and you can spend them on Avril Lavigne family.

[Liam Bensby]

Exactly, exactly.

[Sam Taggart]

You do need to have a pillar of genuine cool, and then you're allowed to do. Silly.

[Liam Bensby]

That girl can sing.

[George Severis]

Oh, I love Avril Lavigne. I just remember at the time, I was like, oh, this is because I have foreign parents and I don't have older siblings. So, like, I don't know what. I don't know where to. I have no context for anything. And I remember every musical artists I would like, I would then immediately find out they were considered lame. I'd be like, I love Simple Plan. Cause I saw them on mtv, and I, like, love the video where they're like, the ceiling is crumbling around. And then people would be like, that's the lamest band. That's, like, the one band you shouldn't like. Thoughts?

[Liam Bensby]

What are they listening to?

[George Severis]

Yeah, I think. Okay, so here's what it was. And this is gonna sound insane now. The cool kids were listening to Dave Matthews Band, and it was cool that they knew what that was.

[Liam Bensby]

That's so. Like, big sister sleepaway.

[George Severis]

Yeah, exactly. It's literally bragging about having context for America. It's being like, you're an immigrant. I like Dave Matthews Band. And there were. You know, we didn't have Google. I mean, there was Google. But the idea that I would understand what Dave Matthews. Like, I could not, by myself, without help understand the significance of Dave Matthews Band.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, one thing that is sort of not talked about is that, like, frat culture did was cool for, like, middle school and high schoolers, because you were like, that's what college kids like.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

So you. There was, like, a value system of being like. Like, it was cool to, like, Dave Matthews and, like, oar. Like, I remember being like, oh, that would be awesome if I liked them. But it didn't ever speak to me in a real way.

[Liam Bensby]

It really feels like I'm the camp counselor and you're the camper, and I like Dave Matthews, and you totally.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

My CD case.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. But I do think there must have been kids in your Jersey school that thought Simple Plan was cool.

[George Severis]

Not the cool ones.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, yeah. But that's also because I think cool in a place like that is just rich.

[George Severis]

Can I say something? No. Is the thing I actually like. I wish it was that simple. But there was literally a hierarchy of cool, and I just couldn't crack it. Here's another example. So I. First time I heard my Immortal by Evanescence, I said, this girl has pipes. This is a great band. Come to find out, that was also illegal at my school. I just can't. It's like, how curious.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. Were you asked what is legal?

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. Were you at a preppy school?

[George Severis]

Yeah, I was at a preppy school.

[Sam Taggart]

Okay, okay, then that makes sense.

[George Severis]

But then the alt kids were somehow knowledgeable. Like, even the kids that would have liked Evanescence were somehow knowledgeable enough to, like, Black Sabbath. You know what I mean?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[George Severis]

And so it was. I was like the sort of, you know, kind of like, I was just fed whatever MTV was feeding me. I was immediately slopping up and they were like, God, how pedestrian.

[Liam Bensby]

There was this really interesting subculture when I was in high school of, like, kids that dressed like they were heavy metal. Like, it, like, kind of verged into skater territory or punk territory, but it was very like, David Lee Roth, like, heavy metal, pop metal band. But they all rolled together and had a harem of girls that were just kind of like, we're all losing our virginity tonight. It was so like. And I don't see that anymore. I know, like, now what is.

[George Severis]

Are you plugged into youth culture?

[Liam Bensby]

I don't know. Ask me a question. I have, like, I'm on TikTok. I, like, watch TikTok.

[Sam Taggart]

But I was. I had a pretty jarring.

[George Severis]

What is the Dave Matthews Band of now? What is the sort of older. What is the sort of like, the thing that your older sibling would introduce you to that would make you cool? You know what I mean?

[Sam Taggart]

Well, I don't know, because now the Internet is so prominent. That's like, less of a thing.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Older siblings don't gatekeep anymore. We need to bring back the gatekeepers.

[George Severis]

I mean, I've said this forever.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, yeah. God, I don't know.

[George Severis]

You went to. You're from New York, right? So you were around, like, were you going to shows?

[Liam Bensby]

I was. I was dating a musician when I was in high school who was much older than me.

[George Severis]

Ooh, I know.

[Liam Bensby]

It was scandalous.

[George Severis]

Is he now a huge celebrity?

[Liam Bensby]

No, but I would go. I, like, learned a lot about how to be on stage from being like a roadie, basically, for this band. And I would go out all night and, like, do fun things that I wasn't supposed to do. Were you doing that?

[Sam Taggart]

No, no. It's funny that that's just, like, true. Like, when you grow up in New York, that's just like, what happens. Is it, like, embarrassing when, like, you meet, like, a 23 year old who just moved here who's like, I want to fucking go out. Cause you're like, what are you, 12?

[Liam Bensby]

Exactly. But also, like, I went to college in Minneapolis.

[Sam Taggart]

Really?

[Liam Bensby]

So I did this kind of like, personality 180 for four years and kind of like, unlearned everything that I had like built up in New York for credibility. And then I moved back to New York immediately afterwards and had to unlearn my personality 180 and like, and become who I was four years prior.

[George Severis]

Did you specifically want to be in a non New York environment?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, the tuition was super cheap, which was like the main reason. But I also was like, this is so random of me.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Like, this is a unnoticed.

[Liam Bensby]

I'm stunting on all of my like cool friends rebelling against this.

[George Severis]

Much like the idea that Dave Matthews Band is cool. There's something about being a New York kid and I've noticed that in many people I know who grew up in New York where they almost fetishize middle class suburbia.

[Liam Bensby]

Totally.

[George Severis]

Cause it's like something. It's their version of someone not from New York watching Harmony Koran's kids or something. It's like, oh my God, they're doing what? They're going to malls.

[Liam Bensby]

No, totally.

[Sam Taggart]

Did it feel like a culture shock?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. But also I was so head to toe black. Like, like, look at my metro card. Like, kind of like such a snob about it.

[George Severis]

Like the first was like falling out of your wall.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. Like, ooh. It just fell out. Like I used that to get around.

[Sam Taggart]

Back where I'm from.

[Liam Bensby]

No.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

And I would like, I had like a mini fridge in my dorm that literally just had ginger ale and rum in it. And I would just have my friends over and I would like play like pull up my itunes library and like.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, I bet you entertain so many songs on that.

[George Severis]

What was on the roster? What was on the itunes library?

[Liam Bensby]

Gosh, I was so obsessed with Animal Collective and Blonde Redhead and that kind of stuff. Yeah. So like stoner music? Kind of.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Mostly.

[Sam Taggart]

God, indie rock and comedy.

[Liam Bensby]

I know.

[Sam Taggart]

Nothing quite like it.

[George Severis]

Wait, I almost. This is a hard pivot. But I'm almost like. Before we do our first segment, should we. Do you want to promote stuff now so that we can get everyone listening and then we do segments, whatever.

[Liam Bensby]

You think I can do that?

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. I put out a record in September called and his Splash Band.

[George Severis]

That's so good.

[Liam Bensby]

Thank you. And that was really fun to make and I toured it around and now I'm mostly just writing well and newly covers. And I released the Covers EP where I covered some of my favorite songs, you know.

[George Severis]

Have you listened to Sabrina Carpenter cover?

[Liam Bensby]

No, I covered Sabrina. I met Sabrina later in the month too, which was really cool. I played this like Jack Antonoff benefit thing. He's Dying. It's a benefit for the benefit for Jack.

[George Severis]

Amazing money. Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

She's not in.

[George Severis]

You guys. Please donate. And that's what you're here to promote tonight. Please donate.

[Liam Bensby]

Please donate.

[George Severis]

Jack Entnoph is not doing well. That Lana album is not.

[Sam Taggart]

I can hear the beeping of the hospital bed right now.

[Liam Bensby]

No, but I remember he did a really nice thing where he was like, sabrina, like, Liam covered you. And I kind of just usually when I'm kind of at a loss for words, I just say like, it's beautiful. Like, you know, like I say something like really earnest like that. I don't necessarily. Wouldn't have necessarily come naturally to me, but she was like, taste is beautiful. And I was like, yeah, I think it's a really beautiful song. She's like, I've never heard that before from anyone.

[Sam Taggart]

She's like, so you've never heard it? Yeah, she's like, so you're not listening.

[Liam Bensby]

And then I.

[George Severis]

Guards.

[Liam Bensby]

And then I pulled out.

[Sam Taggart]

I have an imposter.

[Liam Bensby]

No. Yeah. I was like, it sounds like the Doobie Brothers to me. And that's what I said to her.

[George Severis]

I mean, that's.

[Liam Bensby]

And she was like, yeah. And we, like, talked about Michael McDonald. It was very weird, but it was cool. She's really. She's really cool.

[George Severis]

I like that.

[Sam Taggart]

I was wondering this actually, like, what is your relationship to, Like, I feel like the lines between, like, indie and like pop are more blurred these days. And like, when you like, what. How do you view, like, the pop girls?

[Liam Bensby]

I. I like the pop girls. I wanna. I love. I love Pink Panthers. I love Ethel Cain. Oh my God, we love. I love who I consider. Like, I think Charlie's great. I think Sabrina's great. I think they're all cool. I like, I think that there's like a freak factor drought in music right now. Like, where. Which is why, like, so like the Gaga record. Like, I love. I like it. I love her because of her talents. And I don't even like, I wouldn't necessarily like, love all her music, but I appreciate that she has the gall to like, be so musical theater with like abracadabra or something. Yeah, yeah. And like, no one else really has the gall necessarily. And like, I just want a freak so bad.

[George Severis]

Yeah, it's tough because the Charlie did to an extent, the like whole brat era could have ushered in a more freak forward pop landscape, but I actually sort of don't think it did. And I think everyone who attempted to emulate the brat thing, I mean, I'M immediately thinking of, like, Katy Perry trying to be Camila and Camila Cabet. Like, it never felt quite authentic.

[Sam Taggart]

No.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Have you heard the new Selena Gomez song? That's like a Charlie.

[Liam Bensby]

It's a Charlie song. Yeah, she wrote it.

[George Severis]

Oh, she wrote it.

[Sam Taggart]

But it's, like, so good.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, no, I'm glad Charlie's getting her flowers.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Like, lots of people have said that.

[Sam Taggart]

I watched, like, the end of her Coachella thing on the Internet.

[George Severis]

Oh, yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

And it was so. I was still like. Because you think you're gonna get, like, tired of it. And you're like, no, this is so fun. Like, it's just like, you know, text being like, what am I doing? I'm. Should I still be doing brat? Is this embarrassing?

[George Severis]

Oh, really?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

And it was like. I was like, this is great.

[Liam Bensby]

That's cool. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[George Severis]

Catherine was saying, she was like, it's good that the coolest person is. Is a millennial. Like, that's like, oh, wait, you know what I mean? It's like, oh, for now, at least we have. We have that.

[Liam Bensby]

Totally.

[Sam Taggart]

That's a really good point.

[George Severis]

Okay, let's do our first segment.

[Bowen Yang]

This is Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers from Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang. This podcast is sponsored by PayPal. All right, readers, Katie's publicist, finalist, Kyle's. It's time to talk about one of the most iconic payment brands out there. That's right. It's PayPal. PayPal lets you do you, meaning you can pay your own way with just a click. Once you click the PayPal button, you can choose from a bunch of different ways to pay. You can pay later with PayPal at millions of online stores. If you choose Pay in four, you can split everyday purchases into four smaller payments. No interest, no fees. I think we've all had those chaotic, unhinged purchases.

[George Severis]

Hmm.

[Bowen Yang]

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[Colby Ekowitz]

To get caught up on a lot of news. It's called the seven from the Washington Post. It's a newsletter and podcast. Whether you're reading or hit play, you.

[Sam Taggart]

Get seven stories you need to know.

[Colby Ekowitz]

And you can consume it all in.

[George Severis]

Just a few minutes.

[Colby Ekowitz]

The 7 is out every weekday morning by 7:00am Eastern. I'm Hannah Jewell. I'm one of the writers and I host the show. Find the seven podcast wherever you're listening. The newsletter link is waiting for you in the show.

[George Severis]

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[George Severis]

Our first segment is called Straight Shooters and in this segment we ask you a series of rapid fire questions to gauge your familiarity with and complicity in straight culture. Okay, you have to choose one thing or another thing. You have to go with your gut and the one rule is you can't ask any follow up questions about how the game works and if you do we will be so angry with you.

[Liam Bensby]

I'm going to try my best.

[George Severis]

Good.

[Sam Taggart]

George, you go first though.

[George Severis]

Okay. Speaking out or chasing clout?

[Liam Bensby]

Chasing clout.

[Sam Taggart]

Sloppy seconds or yesteryears?

[George Severis]

Yesteryears Subway delays or birthday malaise Subway delays.

[Sam Taggart]

Living your Truth or living in Duluth.

[Liam Bensby]

Living in Duluth.

[George Severis]

Esti haim or My Bestie Siam.

[Liam Bensby]

My Bestie Siam, for sure.

[Sam Taggart]

Similar coping mechanisms or hoping for orgasisms.

[Liam Bensby]

Hoping for orgasms, definitely.

[George Severis]

Breaking up Monopoly power Or waking up aboard the Mayflower.

[Sam Taggart]

Wow.

[Liam Bensby]

Breaking up Monopoly.

[George Severis]

Yes, that's right. Bernie and Coachella.

[Sam Taggart]

Wow.

[George Severis]

Okay, we rank everyone's performance on a scale of 0 to 1000 doves.

[Sam Taggart]

Blades of grass.

[George Severis]

But now we Change it to 0 to 1,000 blades of grass.

[Liam Bensby]

Okay.

[George Severis]

But I don't know if it's catching on yet. I guess we'll see.

[Sam Taggart]

No, but I like that we're growing and changing.

[George Severis]

It's very iconic to choose the single least discussed song on the album Blades of Grass. All of. To make the name of our segment.

[Liam Bensby]

That's really fun.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, yes. What else would we do? Zombie Boys. No, that makes no sense.

[George Severis]

I mean, there is something about 0 to 1000 doves that really rolled off the tongue. But I'm getting used to blades of grass. And I also like the idea that we would give someone a gift of. Here you. 700 blades of grass.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, there's something.

[Liam Bensby]

Thousand shadows of.

[George Severis]

Yeah, exactly. Let's do. For this one. Let's do 0 to 1000 shadows of a man.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, I'm gonna go ahead and say 742 shadows of a man.

[George Severis]

Congratulations.

[Liam Bensby]

Okay. And I can't ask why.

[George Severis]

No. Now the game is over. Well, we basically. I thought you did a great job. We rank it based on performance. It's basically a performance based.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

I would say you were so confident, and you were so, like, chill about it, and it was like you had done it before. I guess I would say it was almost like you were chill doming us in the sense that you were, like, not impressed with anything.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. You were like, okay.

[George Severis]

Yeah. It was sort of like you were like, all right.

[Liam Bensby]

It went too quick.

[George Severis]

Yeah. I think, you know, sometimes we appreciate a little. A little, like.

[Liam Bensby]

You know, I've been. I'm in the practice or in the occupation of tokenizing myself as gay guy surrounded by straight band boys.

[Sam Taggart]

Totally.

[Liam Bensby]

So, you know, I have to chill.

[George Severis]

You haven't met him yet.

[Liam Bensby]

I have to be the chill dog.

[George Severis]

I see. I see.

[Sam Taggart]

That must be hard, you know?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

Yeah. What is your. What is a difficult. What is your strategy for being the only gay guy in the room?

[Liam Bensby]

Um, sometimes. Well, you. I feel like, actually, most recently on this tour that I did in Europe, I was touring with this band of straight guys, and they were all touring together, but I was touring by myself. So I truly would not have uttered a word to a single person on my travel day to arrive at the venue. And then I would get into the green room and I would be like, gab, gab, gab, gab, gab. Like, not stop, like clown show. And that's, I think, where I end up in those situations.

[Sam Taggart]

So you were kind of going like entertainer.

[Liam Bensby]

I do become diva and I become kind of crass and sassy and they love it. They love to hear it.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, yeah. You're smacking them on the ass.

[Liam Bensby]

I'm smacking them on the ass. I'm saying show me your cock.

[George Severis]

Oh.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, yeah. Fun stuff like that.

[George Severis]

That's what we do.

[Sam Taggart]

They love it.

[George Severis]

We do that at the I Heart offices every day.

[Sam Taggart]

They love it.

[Liam Bensby]

No, totally. That hallway that you walk the hallway in. Hits to get here.

[George Severis]

The tunnel of hits, actually.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

If I was, if I was hungover.

[Sam Taggart]

No, it hurts. It hurts.

[George Severis]

It's enough to make you turn around and walk back.

[Sam Taggart]

You have to be strong to get through.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, yeah. Cool.

[George Severis]

Should we get into straight topics?

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, I'm very curious what your straight topic.

[George Severis]

What is your straight topic? And what do you think is straight about it?

[Liam Bensby]

Okay, so I think. Okay, so hobbies, like, hobbies that you do in public. I walking the streets of New York lately have been seeing a lot of yo yos happening from amongst boys and men and then. And then more men more recently stunting on me with ball and cup. Do you know what I'm talking about?

[Sam Taggart]

I know exactly what you're talking about. Like ball and cup is the old.

[Liam Bensby]

School style game, the depression era wooden toy where you try to get a.

[Sam Taggart]

Ball on a string into a cup, into a cup.

[Liam Bensby]

And they're just kind of casually like talking to their friends with the ball in cup.

[George Severis]

And these are. How are they dressed?

[Liam Bensby]

They're dressed like, you know, like wife beater, flannel, like skater.

[George Severis]

Wide legged pants.

[Liam Bensby]

Wide legged pants. Or it's kind of more on like the metro, like espresso. Espresso cup, skateboard, like earring thing.

[George Severis]

Yeah. So sort of like cini could be located in any major American or European city. Yeah, it's like menswear.

[Liam Bensby]

It's like an offshoot of like Beyblades. But like.

[Sam Taggart]

Right.

[George Severis]

They're listening.

[Liam Bensby]

Well, I don't want to give that up yet.

[Sam Taggart]

That's the big thing is that it is like fidgeting for the last decade has been huge. Yeah, like beyblades, the fidget spinners. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's been very cool. To have a little toy with you.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

If you were like 12, 10 years ago and now you're 22 and you're like, cool. And you're like, well, I still gotta play with my toy.

[Liam Bensby]

No, exactly. I still need to play with my toy and I can't give you my full attention.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, yeah.

[George Severis]

This is such a rich topic because it's the intersection of so much stuff around the crisis in masculinity. So on the one hand, we have the return to analog. It's a sort of, you know, vinyl resurgence adjacent type thing. Like, of course I'm gonna play with wooden toys rather than an iPhone app. So there's that. Then there is a sort of. I'm sorry to say this, but a sort of performance of autism that I find is, like, conscious among men who almost, like, want to show you how little they care.

[Liam Bensby]

Totally.

[George Severis]

So they're just like. It's almost an extension of like the businessman having a little basketball hoop in his office and doing that while he's in a meeting with a woman.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

But it's the contemporary skater version of that. Then there is the kind of semi ironic back to baby movement, which is like grown men in their 30s dressing and acting like babies almost as a way to, like, reject. It's almost like a response to frankly, like, wokeness. It's like, rather than caring about the election, I'm in a crib.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

Like, I am literally, like, I am wearing clothes that do not fit me and I'm walking in the middle of the street because I don't really care. I'm not gonna go on the sidewalk and I'm playing with a toy for babies.

[Liam Bensby]

Do you think that it's about being seen, though, about others, or is that gay?

[George Severis]

Well, that's the thing is it is about being seen, but you don't have the courage to do something, to be a diva. You don't have the courage to walk into a room and start belting.

[Liam Bensby]

You know what would be really gay is if, like, they were just, like, dragging the ball behind them and it wasn't going in the cup and their.

[Sam Taggart]

Dad was like, play with it. And they're like, no, that would be the future.

[Liam Bensby]

That would be cool.

[Sam Taggart]

I think there's also something where it is, like, you're trying to show that you're part of the group. Like, that's part of it too. Where you're like, I remember, like, hacky sack culture and really sort of wanting to be like, well, maybe I could be into hacky sack culture. Like, I Could immediately have four friends if I just. We're into this a little bit.

[Liam Bensby]

Totally.

[Sam Taggart]

And so it's like a quick way into friendship. Yeah, yeah. That obviously is a little bit sad. But at the same time, you know, it's better than no way into friendship.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. Baby performance.

[George Severis]

Baby performance.

[Sam Taggart]

There's also.

[George Severis]

It's like all of it comes down to like, can you believe I'm doing this?

[Liam Bensby]

Uh huh.

[George Severis]

You know what I mean?

[Sam Taggart]

Okay. I fully. I wonder how you'll feel about this as someone in sort of music indie circles where I feel like that's such a thing though, is to like have a thing that is like, oh, that's like, blah, blah, blah. He blows bubbles all the time. Like, and it's like, I remember those guys, like I meet guys that were like, oh, he like dresses like that.

[Liam Bensby]

I know.

[Sam Taggart]

And you like have to have a thing.

[Liam Bensby]

It used to be like heroin, which would have been like actually cool.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Now it's matcha.

[Liam Bensby]

No, exactly.

[George Severis]

No, it does. It almost. It's like the character in the Princess Diaries, the love interest who plays the piano and there's M and Ms. On it. Or it's like Zachary Quinto in Girls where he just has a toothbrush in his mouth.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, totally.

[Liam Bensby]

No, totally.

[George Severis]

Huh.

[Liam Bensby]

I love it. I love that. It is kind of deeply antisocial.

[George Severis]

Yes, it's deeply antisocial. And it's just like another way. It's like another fuck you. It's actually like the same as a businessman being on his phone doing emails. But you're just doing the alt version of that.

[Liam Bensby]

No, totally. I talk about this with my therapist a lot where I want to be more cavalier and kind of. And I kind of associate walking around with a toothbrush in your mouth to be cavalier and kind of eccentric and disease.

[George Severis]

Yes, totally.

[Liam Bensby]

And I've always wanted to be more of that. Watch old Courtney Love interviews and stuff and be like, well, she's like one of the smartest people in the world. But like, she just like stuff like that and pick something that is my thing. Totally.

[George Severis]

But I wonder where is the line between. When you see Courtney Love doing that, it's so incredible and seems so authentic. And when you see a guy in Dime Square that's like, yo yoing. You're like, I want to punch him in the face.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

And what is it that, like, what is the difference? I mean, other than, you know, whatever one is.

[Liam Bensby]

I think a lot of them are rich kids. And I feel like if you're rich, it's your responsibility. To flaunt it and be like a dandy, like a fancy guy, you know? And if you're not a fancy guy, then like, then you don't deserve. You don't deserve to be a fancy guy. Like, it's like, totally. Like, why are you playing with a wooden toy?

[Sam Taggart]

Like, right, right, right, right.

[George Severis]

You should be like, in a three piece suit.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

In a pipe.

[Liam Bensby]

Totally. Like, I would be so under tipping away that, like, weird, like, haberdashery, like culture, like, kind of cooler than.

[George Severis]

Okay, thank you for bringing a class analysis into it. No, because that is true. Because you don't. It is like a. There is something about those guys where regardless of how disheveled they look, they are ultimately weirdly wearing like supreme. Like they are actually wearing expensive clothing.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, this is, this is something I'm struggling with in general where the more I'm like, around in the world, like, I kind of thought everybody was on the same page and now I'm like, oh, nobody's on the same.

[George Severis]

Nobody's on the same page. We've. The culture has never been more fractured.

[Sam Taggart]

And like, literally the price of people's clothes. I was like, oh, everybody's doing exactly the same as me. And it's like, not even close. Like, that random t shirt is $300. Yeah. And like, I had no idea. And they're like, well, yeah, like, of course. And they think that's normal. It's freaking me out.

[George Severis]

Yes. But then there's also like the. There's also the other side of that, which is almost like bragging about how you are wearing, how you have a bunch of expensive stuff that you didn't pay for because you are plugged into communities where that stuff gets passed around.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

And actually the ability to know the difference is also this in group dynamic of like the contemporary version of like woman, of like quiet luxury versus you know, loud wealth.

[Liam Bensby]

Do you still see people in your orbit ever, like, thank a brand for.

[George Severis]

Giving them, if anything, when you know.

[Liam Bensby]

Like, they bought it?

[George Severis]

Oh, that.

[Liam Bensby]

I've never even considered that. I think that's kind of cool, actually.

[George Severis]

Do you think people are doing that but even though they bought it?

[Sam Taggart]

No.

[Liam Bensby]

So that they can get more.

[Sam Taggart]

I have to say no one that we know.

[George Severis]

Okay, good. I have always wanted to do. I've always wanted to do that as a bit. And I'm literally terrified that some people will take it seriously. Like, I'm trying to think what I like buying something that you would like, even just like Starbucks or, you know, something stupid and Then be. And then being like, thank you. Je t'aime. Starbucks. But I'm just, like, terrified at this point that one person would think I was serious.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, do you want to try it.

[Liam Bensby]

For Blue Bottle coffee?

[Sam Taggart]

Thanks. Blue Bottle without. Couldn't podcast.

[George Severis]

What brand would you like to send you free stuff?

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, shoot your shot.

[Liam Bensby]

Probably like a nice sunscreen.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, that's so cute.

[George Severis]

Okay, you gotta aim higher.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, I'm seeing it head to toe. Gucci. Yeah, Gucci. Gucci.

[George Severis]

Okay, great. Gucci. So either sunscreen or Gucci.

[Sam Taggart]

Ideally both. You know, why limit yourself?

[Liam Bensby]

Or like, coff. Actually coffee.

[Sam Taggart]

That would be nice.

[George Severis]

I mean, I do. I've always fetishized the concept of a lifetime supply of something.

[Liam Bensby]

Of course.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, I have to. But I have always gotten caught up in sort of what that means legally.

[George Severis]

Sure. Well, also then the way it's taxed, I don't even want to look at it.

[Sam Taggart]

I don't wanna know.

[George Severis]

It's like winning the lottery.

[Liam Bensby]

No. Tomorrow.

[George Severis]

Or suddenly you're actually, like, more poor than you've ever been.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

And also being sued by four people.

[Liam Bensby]

Did you ever watch Celebrity Big Brother UK with Pete Burns and Dennis Rodman?

[Sam Taggart]

No.

[Liam Bensby]

This season, it's. It's like high art. It's, like, incredible. And there's this. They make you ration your food on that show. Like, you have to win challenges in order to get fed in this way. It's really dark. But they all, as a house, decided that they wanted to forfeit the food in exchange for coffee and cigarettes. And that was like the coolest thing I've ever seen on tv. And it's like them in the interview room being like, all we want is coffee and cigarettes. Like, get rid of everything else. That's what I want in my lifetime supply.

[George Severis]

Sometimes I bump up against this idea that reality TV is high art because it's such a classic thing where people are like, Real Housewives is Shakespeare. And I'm like, no, it's not. And then you hear things like that and you're like, it is. This is.

[Liam Bensby]

But those seasons, they have, like, there was like a member of parliament on it. There's like an old person, a young person. Da, da, da, da. It feels very surreal and weird.

[Sam Taggart]

I wanna go back to the idea of having a thing.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Yeah. Okay.

[Sam Taggart]

Have you ever had a thing?

[Liam Bensby]

Ooh, Um. A thing. I used to imitate Mariah Carey for money in my after school program when I was a kid.

[George Severis]

When you say for money, when Might.

[Liam Bensby]

Before my voice had changed.

[George Severis]

But in the after school. So what was whistle tone?

[Liam Bensby]

Like, I would just. I would fully do the, like, head voice. Like, and I was good. I could do it.

[Sam Taggart]

Whoa.

[Liam Bensby]

And I would. They would. They would give me, like, 50 cents. It was like, busting.

[George Severis]

It was during the Depression.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. But I don't know, a thing.

[Sam Taggart]

Like, a passive thing.

[George Severis]

Yeah. I'm trying to think.

[Sam Taggart]

I feel like in college, I kept trying to have a thing.

[George Severis]

Like, what were the things you tried?

[Sam Taggart]

Well, I, like, I had these, like, insane bright red shoes, and I was like, that's my thing is I'm like the guy with red shoes.

[George Severis]

Well, you went through a phase, which I'm noticing is less so now, where you were really leaning into cowboy look. And that was your thing. Cowboy boots wrangler.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. I mean, I'm still. I'm still. I'm finding a happy medium with the cowboy thing.

[George Severis]

This is the most, like, 2010s American Apparel thing. But when I was in college, I was like, my thing will be cultural. Like, bright colored cords that I'm like corduroys. And, like, I will have, like, a bright blue one, a like, sort of like, burgundy one, a bright red one, a bright yellow one. And I bought a bunch. And then like, a month later, I was like, what the fuck are you doing? Like, I can't. I can't commit to this. Like, I was just like, I don't have. And I would. I bumped into the fact that it would be then very difficult to style them with anything.

[Liam Bensby]

Totally.

[George Severis]

So I was like. I looked, like, completely insane and was wearing.

[Liam Bensby]

Well, no, the great thing about, like, loud pants is that everything else can be really plain.

[George Severis]

I know, but I, like, didn't plan for that. So I just had T shirts that were from Urban Outfitters, and they said, pugs, not drugs.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, God.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Talk about Minneapolis.

[Sam Taggart]

I know. I definitely wanted to be like, my thing is that every day I have a funny T shirt. That was like, high school, but that's normal.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, of course.

[George Severis]

I remember when I was in middle school and still in New Jersey, I was obsessed with. I didn't have the courage to do this, but I was like, I wish I could pull off a bandana, like, boy band style. Like, I was just like, what if I just can put on a white bandana or, like, a green bandana and come to school?

[Liam Bensby]

You could have just done it. Yeah.

[George Severis]

It's hard, but it, again, difficult to style.

[Liam Bensby]

Well, everything else. That's the thing. It's like, you pick one.

[George Severis]

I know.

[Liam Bensby]

Kooky thing. And Then everything else can be drab.

[George Severis]

You know what you also forget when you're a kid is like, because you don't have control of like, like how you're getting places and you don't have your own money. It's like what you're saying like, oh, yeah, just buy a bunch of basics. It's like, that's a months long project.

[Liam Bensby]

No, totally.

[George Severis]

That is like multiple trips to the mall, like asking your parents, being like, I really want this, I really want this.

[Sam Taggart]

And then being like, you're gonna wear.

[George Severis]

A bandana an A minus. And maybe like, I feel like I.

[Liam Bensby]

Was very like cross body bag before it was like, before it was a thing. Yeah. And I was also victim to like chunky heel. Like, you know, like chunky heel shoes. Like, but like, keep it leisure thing. I was like, very much like, all my shoes are gonna look like that. Like Skechers like, thing.

[George Severis]

But have you ever tried to pull off like a, like overalls?

[Sam Taggart]

Of course you don't remember my overalls.

[George Severis]

Oh, you do you, you, you could pull the ball. See, that's exactly the kind of thing I could never pull off. Or like.

[Sam Taggart]

See, the thing is, having a thing is so much easier in New York.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

I. I could try so many things here and people would be like, yeah, he's trying a thing. In la, if you try a thing, people are like, what does this say about you? They're like, why? Why would you do that?

[George Severis]

And that's so funny because in la, my image of like walking around Silver Lake is like, you see a couple and the man is like 50 years old and wearing vans and the woman is full rockabilly and like 25 and you just like can't question it.

[Liam Bensby]

It's crazy how the bohemian safari desert thing has still not died.

[Sam Taggart]

No.

[Liam Bensby]

It's so haberdashery.

[George Severis]

Well, that's the thing. New York vs. LA is one of our favorite topics.

[Sam Taggart]

But essentially what this podcast is, the.

[George Severis]

Thing with LA is on the one hand, you would think on the cutting edge of culture, since they were producing all the culture that everyone else consuming. On the other hand, you go there and it's still 2007.

[Liam Bensby]

No, fully.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Big hat.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Are everywhere. Well, that's because New York is trying to impress New York, Louisiana is trying to impress the Midwest.

[George Severis]

Wow.

[Sam Taggart]

So they can't be too edgy or they'll alienate the base. That's true.

[George Severis]

Alienate the base.

[Liam Bensby]

No, that's so, so true.

[Sam Taggart]

I find it very upsetting even. Cause. Yeah. Here, when you See, someone who's dressed, like, really normal, you're like, well, they're doing that on purpose. There's like a knowledge there and there. You're like, they don't know. They just don't know. God, it's so nice to be here and just be able to shit talk.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, thank God.

[George Severis]

Okay, yo yos.

[Sam Taggart]

Okay. And okay. Fidgeting.

[George Severis]

Yeah, yeah, fidgeting.

[Liam Bensby]

Fidgeting.

[George Severis]

Are you a fidgeter?

[Liam Bensby]

For sure. I'm like a nail biter. Oh, yeah. Until. Or like, I recently was, like, really, really trying not to, but I recently relapsed.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, no. How'd that go for you?

[Liam Bensby]

I was watching a movie and I just. Suddenly they were gone and it was.

[Sam Taggart]

A real nail biter.

[George Severis]

Yeah, Yeah. A great thing you can do about that. Be on your phone as well.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

And then you won't be biting your nails.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, this is where I'm. When it comes to. Back to gay Be straight, of course, is that straight guys are playing wooden cup game, whereas gay guys are looking for sex on their phone.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

But I actually, like, think the wooden cup game is better. I would love to reclaim wooden cup game and yo yo in a different context.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, as you know, the premise of this podcast isn't that gay is better than straight. Of course, sometimes it's that straight is better than gay. I actually would love to play wooden cup game rather than be on Sniffies looking at random dicks.

[Liam Bensby]

Definitely.

[George Severis]

Yeah. I think we need to invent a new fidgeting thing that's sort of, like, specifically targeted towards gay guys and maybe even the entire LGBTQ community. And I wonder what that would be.

[Sam Taggart]

Imagine if. So whenever we go out of town for a show, imagine if instead of sitting in the hotel room for three hours looking at the various apps, we were playing cup game. We would be so good at cup game.

[Liam Bensby]

What about, like, de Stressor, like the balls with the bells in them where you like. You know what I mean? Or like a squeezer or one of.

[George Severis]

Those things that's full of blue liquid and little dolphins.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, my God.

[George Severis]

We should bring those back.

[Sam Taggart]

We should bring those back. I've actually.

[George Severis]

It's like we're not on Sniffy's, but we're just doing this. Jerking off a dolphin.

[Sam Taggart]

That's actually an amazing idea. And talk about a thing.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Imagine if that was my thing.

[George Severis]

Oh, people would be so impressed. Yeah, you. That is definitely the gay version of having a yo yo is you having those, like, the gayest glittery. They're, like, leaking Just like, glittery blue liquid and little, like, beach balls and dolphins flying everywhere.

[Sam Taggart]

That would be so great. Oh, my God. I've actually recently.

[Liam Bensby]

Wait, it's vapes. Oh, it's vapes.

[George Severis]

It's definitely vapes.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

And also for a certain subset. I know this is also on the phone, but for a certain subset, it's like New York Times games. You know what I mean?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

It's like. It's Wordle. It's crossword puzzle. That's a big. Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

In many ways, it's reading a book. Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Sometimes I'm like, that's his thing.

[Sam Taggart]

Instead of three hours on an app, I could just read a book and, like, get pretty far. That realization has only hit me in the last year.

[George Severis]

I know. It's sort of crazy that all you have to do is put your phone in a different room and you could read a book.

[Sam Taggart]

You could read a whole book.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

And you'll feel better.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

You know what I'm jealous of you for? And people that are artists that are not writers or. I mean, I know you're also a writer, but artists that are not primarily writing in a Google Doc.

[Sam Taggart]

You know what I love about dummies like you?

[George Severis]

No. No. It's like. Cause I know, like, to be a musician, to be a painter, to be a sculptor, you literally have to use your hands for what you are doing.

[Liam Bensby]

Totally.

[George Severis]

And can you imagine if we had that luxury, like, to wake up every day and be a painter and be like, I literally cannot pick up my phone.

[Sam Taggart]

No, that would be nice.

[George Severis]

Or I'm in the studio, as I know there's some downtime, but, like, I'm in the studio recording, and so I have to have my guitar on me.

[Sam Taggart]

You essentially. It's like how I feel when I eat a burrito.

[George Severis]

I'm like, well, all we have is eating a burrito. Do you understand?

[Sam Taggart]

Like, at least I can't be touching my forehead.

[Liam Bensby]

Ten sacred minutes.

[George Severis]

Yeah, exactly.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. It's nice. But also, like, most of my time is spent, like, head in the clouds, walking around writing in my head.

[George Severis]

Do you ban yourself from, like, do you take walks that are like, no tech?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, sometimes I think that's a big thing. Totally.

[George Severis]

We should maybe try out at some point.

[Sam Taggart]

I should try it out.

[George Severis]

You know James Cherry?

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

He recently put. He. He recently posted. Like, he bought a laptop and he was like, it's crazy to like, you guys are not gonna believe this, but this is sort of the first laptop I've ever bought. Because he was just like, Yeah. I am an artist that works with my hands. I. When I went to college, I went to art school. Presumably. I'm not. I'm not sure. It's like, he's the. The default of, like, you wake up, you're on a laptop. Has never existed for him. Right.

[Sam Taggart]

Because also, like, if he needs an email, he can use his phone.

[George Severis]

Exactly.

[Sam Taggart]

That's interesting. That's awesome.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Well, just something to think about.

[Liam Bensby]

Did you ever have, like, the little, like, when people kind of were regressing on purpose and getting, like, dumped on Nokia?

[George Severis]

Like, that's the thing. It's like, I don't have the much, like, the. Not having the courage to wear a bandana. I'm like, I just.

[Liam Bensby]

That's a thing.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Like, I exist in the state of desire for the better thing, but I'm. But I would never actually take the step to get there. Would you ever get a dumb phone?

[Sam Taggart]

No. No way. I also like the convenience of just like, a map is real.

[Liam Bensby]

No, totally. That's, like, so much of it.

[George Severis]

But they have. That's the thing. There's phones that have texting and map.

[Sam Taggart]

I'm not buying it. I've never seen one of these phones in my damn life. It's like. It's too hard. I mean, I actually think it's bad for you.

[George Severis]

Yeah, yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

This is my. Okay, here's a hot take. I think it's bad when people are like, I'm checking out of everything and I'm living this life. Like, I'm like, when Lorde was like, I don't use social media anymore, I'm like, okay, well, you're gonna lose touch with what society is.

[George Severis]

I don't think she has.

[Sam Taggart]

I think she did lose touch, and I think she's back and she's in touch again.

[George Severis]

You think she lost touch with solar power?

[Sam Taggart]

Well, as a solar power, Stan, yes, I think she lost touch. And I think it was an important part of her journey, but I think she lost touch.

[George Severis]

I see what you're saying. You're saying her commentary on sort of like pilates and being California sober did not feel of its time.

[Sam Taggart]

No.

[Liam Bensby]

Everybody's line about that record is, it will age well. That's what I hear every gay guy say. But it will age well.

[Sam Taggart]

I think it will stand on it.

[Liam Bensby]

I think I kind of agree.

[George Severis]

I agree, too, because I think that the issue was, at the time, no one wanted that kind of social commentary because that's not quote, unquote, where we were at. But at some point, that Just becomes universal. Like, it just becomes, like, a general. Those themes, like, those themes exist in and out of culture forever.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

Like, Ray of Light happened to come out at the exact right time for that to resonate. But what if ray of light had come out in 2003? Post 9 11. I don't think that would have worked.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, for the record, I've always supported solar power. I just think. I do think she was just disconnected, and that maybe was great for her individually, but as someone trying to comment on. Society is complicated.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

I mean, so have you met Lorde or.

[Liam Bensby]

I have.

[Sam Taggart]

Was she nice?

[Liam Bensby]

She's great. So nice.

[Sam Taggart]

Did you. Was it pre or post? Solar power?

[Liam Bensby]

Post.

[Sam Taggart]

And did you say.

[George Severis]

Did you say it's gonna age well?

[Sam Taggart]

It's gonna age well?

[Liam Bensby]

You know what? I said that to her, and she said, thank you for saying that to me. I needed that.

[Sam Taggart]

That's nice. That's nice.

[George Severis]

I do love that. That's the wait that should start.

[Sam Taggart]

You met her at Jack Antono.

[George Severis]

Jack. Edna's hospital bed. She's in tears. She's like, jack, that's my new deal on accent. Well, should we do our final segment?

[Sam Taggart]

Is it time?

[George Severis]

We don't have to.

[Sam Taggart]

No, we can. Well, I feel like it's that thing of, like, when you say we're having so much fun.

[George Severis]

I know I'm having a lot of fun, but I also want to gossip in a way that we can. I keep wanting to ask you things that I know I shouldn't.

[Sam Taggart]

Ooh, try.

[George Severis]

No.

[Sam Taggart]

Come on. He told us about Lorde. He's down to spill.

[Liam Bensby]

He told us Jack's sick.

[George Severis]

Okay.

[Sam Taggart]

Jack's been keeping that tight.

[George Severis]

Okay. Give us all the music industry gossip.

[Liam Bensby]

Oh, my God.

[George Severis]

When's the Sky Ferreira album coming?

[Liam Bensby]

I have no idea. I don't. Honestly, I don't know that much gossip about it. I. I wish that I knew more.

[George Severis]

I don't know who is the biggest bitch in music.

[Sam Taggart]

You can't say Katy Perry.

[Liam Bensby]

No, I love that she's saying, what a wonderful world in space and not.

[George Severis]

What a woman's world.

[Liam Bensby]

That's deeply antisocial behavior.

[George Severis]

It is crazy. Do you find that the space thing is so many layers of evil that you can't even wrap your mind? There's so much. I can't even say a sentence that, like, could wrap up my feelings about it.

[Liam Bensby]

It's so, like, gratuitous in every way.

[Sam Taggart]

It's so gratuitous. I, like, feel bad for the people involved. I feel even though they like, willingly. I'm just like, this is all horrible.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

And even the gratuitousness seems almost like the point. It's almost like they all know it is. And they're skipping the part where they pretend it isn't.

[Liam Bensby]

It would have been better if they were up there for longer.

[George Severis]

I know.

[Liam Bensby]

If it was like a day, nine months or. Yeah. All you would have to do is a real mission.

[George Severis]

All you'd have to do is, like, add a little charity element. Just be like and.

[Liam Bensby]

Exactly.

[George Severis]

And we're bringing a. Make a wish kid. We're bringing Jack Antonoff with us who's dying. His final wish was to go to space with Katy Perry.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

He's. Oh, my God, that is so Jack Antonoff. To be like, I love women and women artists like Katy Perry and I want to go to space with Gayle King and Katy Perry. This is my final wish. I am dying of, you know, synthesizer disease.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

And it is time for me to have my final wish.

[Sam Taggart]

That would have been so amazing. And we could have saved him.

[George Severis]

And we could have saved him. Yeah. It could have been an interstellar where he comes back and he's 12 years old. Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

I can't. It's so funny.

[George Severis]

Okay, we have to tell you about Lizzo's past. Lizzo's past is a concept Sam came up with where when an up and coming musical artist is at the pass, where she has to decide between going Pitchfork and going Target. So it's named after Lizzo. Who chose Target? She was an up and coming artist. People forget. She was very cool. Like super.

[Liam Bensby]

Like touring with Slater Kenny.

[George Severis]

Touring with Slater Kinney. She chose Target. Chapel Roan is currently at the pass and she's delay making a decision, but we support whatever.

[Sam Taggart]

We're scared, but we delay.

[George Severis]

And I would support either one. Heim chose Pitchfork. Twigs chose Pitchfork.

[Sam Taggart]

Lord chose Pitchfork.

[George Severis]

Lord chose Pitchfork. Who's someone who chose target?

[Liam Bensby]

McRae. Tate McCracra.

[George Severis]

Yeah. But it's like, was she ever at the pass?

[Liam Bensby]

She was never at the pass. Yes, she was never at the pass.

[George Severis]

Anyway, the point is if.

[Sam Taggart]

Honey, she's never even been to the pass. Oh, Tate McCray.

[George Severis]

Do you feel like. Do you feel like you're at the past? Do you feel like you've been at the past or do you think it's coming for you?

[Sam Taggart]

Are you scared of the past?

[Liam Bensby]

I've been at the past.

[George Severis]

You've been at the past?

[Colby Ekowitz]

Really?

[Sam Taggart]

Tell us about the past.

[Liam Bensby]

No, I've not been at the past. I've just Like, I feel. I don't know. This sounds kind of, like, trite because there's lots of things going on in.

[George Severis]

The world that are horrible. Name one.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, I can't think of anything.

[Liam Bensby]

I still think there's a lot of homophobia in music in a way where, like, gay guys don't want to see other gay guys succeed.

[George Severis]

I agree.

[Liam Bensby]

And there's a lot of gatekeeping in this funny kind of way where, like, I've been doing this for a long time, and I'm gonna keep doing it because it's, like, lifeblood. But I feel like, I don't know, like, it's. Yeah. Like, I talk about this with, like, a lot of my, like, gay guy musician friends where we're all kind of in this, like, funny situation where we're, like, doing these songwriter y things or whatever, but then you still just have Alex G. And M.J. linderman, and they just dominate the genius boy thing. And that's cool. They're great. They're really good. But, yeah, we want to throw it back for some gay guy one day.

[George Severis]

So it's like, I never considered that.

[Liam Bensby]

Gay guys have to choose Pitchfork.

[George Severis]

Exactly. No, this is.

[Sam Taggart]

So it's forced upon them.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Because, I mean, who was the last gay guy to choose Target? Elton John.

[Liam Bensby]

Adam Lambert.

[George Severis]

Adam Lambert.

[Sam Taggart]

Adam Lambert.

[George Severis]

Adam Lambert chose Target.

[Sam Taggart]

And even then, Target kind of was like, you can go in the clearance aisle.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, yeah, for sure.

[George Severis]

They're not putting him right in. In the front with the Oprah's Book Club selection.

[Sam Taggart]

No, no. The Taylor Swift CD is on.

[George Severis]

Taylor Swift.

[Liam Bensby]

Well, Troye Sivan is kind of.

[George Severis]

Oh, that's interesting.

[Sam Taggart]

He's getting close. But it's also in our bubble still. Like, I feel like in our bubble, he's a big pop star, but in, like. Does my mom know who Troye Sivan is?

[George Severis]

Sam Smith.

[Liam Bensby]

Sam Smith.

[Sam Taggart]

Sam Smith chose Target.

[Liam Bensby]

Chose Target.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Sam Smith chose Target. And that's just that perfume. Genius chose Pitchfork, but in an empowered way.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, absolutely.

[George Severis]

But I think it's interesting. The gatekeeping of it all is interesting, what you're saying. It's like, you can be as a gay guy at the pass, and you can see Pitchfork on one end and you can see Target on the other end, but there is this, like, music exec guy that is in front of the target and is like, do you have your. Do you have your id?

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

And then sort of like you're in a dream where you can't find your ID anywhere. It's like, not in Any of your pockets.

[Liam Bensby]

Wow.

[Sam Taggart]

Wow. I would hate to be at Lizzo's Pass and not have my id.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

Lizzo's past is so funny.

[George Severis]

We. Yesterday. We. Our guest yesterday, Doreen St. Felix, was saying that potentially there's a world in which you could visit Target, but then be like, all right, I have, like, Kim Petras.

[Sam Taggart]

Yes, exactly.

[George Severis]

That's a great example. And then go back and be like. And now. All right, that was fun. I visited Target. Time to go Pitchfork.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

I'm excited. I'm very excited for what she does next.

[George Severis]

I agree.

[Liam Bensby]

I have friends that have been working with her. I'm excited about it.

[George Severis]

She always keeps us on our toes. She does.

[Sam Taggart]

And I think people really want to discount her.

[George Severis]

They really do. People are actually so cruel to her.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. For no reason. Reason.

[George Severis]

Well, but I'm on her side, is what I'm saying. I will follow her.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. I will follow her as well.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[George Severis]

What if Bjork chose Target?

[Liam Bensby]

Then it'd be. Then it'd be really good.

[George Severis]

Yeah. When she wrote the Madonna song, that was like, the most target she could possibly get. But it was like bedtime stories. Yeah, bedtime stories. But that was still so Pitchfork.

[Liam Bensby]

I know. I think the most target she went was doing, you know, the Oscars. No, no, no, no. The. You blow a few.

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, yeah.

[George Severis]

Oh, so it's also quiet. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

But that was like.

[Liam Bensby]

It was like.

[George Severis]

No, that was pretty. Yeah.

[Liam Bensby]

That was so, like, Christmas time.

[George Severis]

It was so Christmas time. But don't you think that was like a commentary on a show tune? It was like.

[Liam Bensby]

Well, it's her being, like, freaky deaky, but still. It's like. I remember when that was like, the ad for, like, Sex and the City.

[George Severis]

Yes.

[Liam Bensby]

And like, Sarah Jessica Parker's, like, with the big, like, the red balloons and stuff.

[Sam Taggart]

Speaking of, I think you know who really was at Pitchfork and chose Target is Jessie Ware.

[Liam Bensby]

Oh, yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Because that one album that I'm forgetting the name of, the disco one, that was so Pitchfork. Everyone was like, this is so fun. And then this follow up.

[Liam Bensby]

But then she was like, I have a tour to. So.

[George Severis]

Yeah. And a podcast.

[Sam Taggart]

The Falling for that was then, like, Pearls was like. And just like that song. And it was like, yeah, that was sad. That was a bummer.

[Liam Bensby]

And now she's just like. She has, like, a mommy podcast.

[George Severis]

Yes, it's literally a podcast.

[Liam Bensby]

Like, what? It's like being a mommy, but it's.

[George Severis]

Her and her mom. And the premise is that they're eating dinner with the Guest.

[Sam Taggart]

Do you get to hear all the like.

[George Severis]

Yeah, there was also.

[Liam Bensby]

Oh, no.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, that's kind of funny.

[Liam Bensby]

Oh, God.

[George Severis]

I saw her@coachella 2012.

[Liam Bensby]

How was it?

[George Severis]

She was great.

[Liam Bensby]

She's.

[George Severis]

I was front row because no one else knew about her.

[Sam Taggart]

No, she is great. I went to one of the 2022 shows or whatever, and it was so.

[George Severis]

She was great. And she was being so British. It was just like. I mean, it was obviously at 2pm because she was not like, one of the headliners at the time, and it was just like her. And there was a stool that had a mug of tea on it. Like, you could see the tea bag.

[Liam Bensby]

That's cool.

[George Severis]

And she was just like, take a sip of tea and then. Do you know?

[Sam Taggart]

Well, talk about having a thing. That's another. Musicians love to have, like a. Ooh.

[George Severis]

Musicians love to have a thing.

[Liam Bensby]

Like a new writer.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. Or like, even, like the guy from the national always has a glass of red wine on stage. Or like, you know, like, there's like, oh, that thing.

[Liam Bensby]

That is some straight shit that I cannot deal with. The like.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, keep going, Keep going.

[Liam Bensby]

I mean, I'm just like. I don't know why you saying the national was just, like, triggering.

[George Severis]

Like, I mean, the words the national are triggering, even if you. If you are a fan of the national, which I think they have some great songs, of course, to hear about the national is triggering.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. It implies a culture.

[George Severis]

Yeah, it's. Yeah, it's so tricky.

[Liam Bensby]

It's just like. I think it's because I see, like, how men age in music, like, where how all of them kind of just go to, like, Blazer Town. Like, they all kind of just like, suddenly it's just like, I have to own a blazer and I have to wear it on stage and I have to, like, not shave as much. Although, I mean, like, sometimes that's cool. Like in a Serge Gainsborg y kind of way where you're, like, unkempt and it's a part of it. But, like. But he's kind of like an honor. I mean, well, he's French, so it doesn't change. That's completely different. But I do want.

[George Severis]

This is actually a great idea for just, like, a long magazine feature that's just like, checking in on all the men of. Of the 2012 Pitchfork era. Like, Avion State. And, like.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, dirty projectors.

[George Severis]

Dirty projectors. Even like, Bon Iver. Like, just like, where are they? What do they look like then and what do they look like now? Because that is Sort of. There is a pitchfork versus target of fashion.

[Sam Taggart]

Well, it's blazortown. It's blazortown.

[George Severis]

It's blazortown. Or there's. Or Hype Blazer or Hypebeast, I think are the two options, don't you think?

[Liam Bensby]

Who's Hypebeast? That's.

[George Severis]

I do think Bon Iver. I recently saw some video of him where he's wearing, like, a bright orange.

[Sam Taggart]

Hoodie that's like, in a Wisconsin way.

[George Severis]

Okay, okay, okay.

[Liam Bensby]

And he's also, like, really, really rich.

[George Severis]

Yes.

[Liam Bensby]

And that's like rich man drag where you're like, hoodie sweatpants, like leisure.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

For some reason, I'm stanning Bon Ivere right now.

[George Severis]

I know everyone is.

[Sam Taggart]

I'm like, defending him.

[Liam Bensby]

I haven't listened to the news.

[George Severis]

Everyone says it's great. It's gonna age really well.

[Sam Taggart]

It's gonna age.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. When, though?

[George Severis]

That's the question.

[Liam Bensby]

What year?

[Sam Taggart]

Oh, I'm popping.

[Liam Bensby]

What year will need solar power really bad.

[George Severis]

That's a good. That's a good question.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

This summer. Solar power is solar power summer. I'm calling it.

[George Severis]

It's not. It's not.

[Liam Bensby]

But, like, it'll make a comeback like Frou Frou.

[George Severis]

Yeah. Or like Murder on the Dance Floor.

[Liam Bensby]

Oh, yeah. Where it's in a movie.

[George Severis]

Yes, exactly. By the way, I think, you know, it should make a comeback a la Murder on the Dance Floor is Feel so Good by Sony.

[Liam Bensby]

Is that not bad? I feel like that came out.

[George Severis]

Did it? Oh, I'm not. Yeah, I'm not on Tick Tock.

[Liam Bensby]

No, it's not even Tick Tock. Just like, it's like, you hear it, you hear it.

[George Severis]

Okay.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, yeah.

[George Severis]

As long as you're hearing it, my work is done.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah. Okay.

[George Severis]

Okay.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Now I think we can do our final.

[George Severis]

Okay, let's do our final segment.

[Bowen Yang]

This is Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers from Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang. This podcast is sponsored by PayPal. All right, readers, Katie's publicist finalist, Kyle's. It's time to talk about one of the most iconic payment brands out there. That's right, it's PayPal. PayPal lets you do you, meaning you can pay your own way with just a click. Once you click the PayPal button, you can choose from a bunch of different ways to pay. You can pay later with PayPal at millions of online stores. If you choose Pay in four, you can split everyday purchases into four smaller payments. No interest, no fees. I think we've all had those chaotic, unhinged purchases. Another way to pay is with your PayPal Debit Mastercard. You can use it online or in store and earn 5% cash back on up to $1,000 spent in the monthly category you choose, like a payroll or ride shares. 5% cash back on a ride home from a messy first date. Yes, please pay in store, pay online, pay over time. Don't just pay PayPal Pay in 4 is subject to approval. Eligibility varies. Learn more at paypal.com forward/payinfor PayPal debit card terms and limits apply. This card is issued by the Bancorp bank and a pursuant to a license by MasterCard International, Inc. Full [e-mail] rewardspal.

[George Severis]

I'm Molly Roberts and I'm Drew Goins. Each Friday on Impromptu, we talk through the questions we can't stop thinking about.

[Liam Bensby]

Do we need to rethink how much we drink?

[Sam Taggart]

Why are companies really asking workers to.

[George Severis]

Come back to the office? Does boycotting a business actually work?

[Sam Taggart]

Should we quit social media?

[Liam Bensby]

We're here when the news gets personal.

[Colby Ekowitz]

And the headlines hit home.

[Sam Taggart]

Join Molly and me every Friday on.

[Bowen Yang]

Impromptu from Washington Post Opinions Find Impromptu wherever you get your podcasts.

[Colby Ekowitz]

Did you know Age is one of the most common causes of dry eyes? Because we can produce fewer tears as we get older, give your dry, burning or irritated eyes a daily refresh With Refresh Optive Mega 3 Lubricant Eye Drops, a preservative free formula that provides fast acting, lasting relief. These artificial tears deliver enhanced hydration that nourishes the eye surface to help protect your natural tears from evaporating. Specially crafted with inactive ingredients like natural plant based oil and antioxidants and enhanced with moisture locking technology, this triple action formula works to soothe symptoms and prevent further irritation. Refresh Optave Mega 3 is safe to use as often as needed. Find your refresh online or in the eye drop aisle at your favorite drugstore grocery, Walmart or Target. This message comes from Greenlight. Ready to start talking to your kids about financial literacy? Meet Greenlight, the debit card and money app that teaches kids and teens how to earn, save, spend wisely and invest with your guardrails in place. With Greenlight, you can send money to kids quickly, set up chores, automate allowance and keep an eye on what your kids are spending with real time notifications. Join millions of parents and kids building healthy financial habits together on Greenlight. Get started risk [e-mail] iheartra.

[Sam Taggart]

Okay, so our final segment is called Shout Outs and in this segment, we pay homage to the grand strait tradition of the radio shout out. Shouting out to anything that we enjoy. People, places, things, ideas.

[George Severis]

And we think of them on the spot. Which is why we're both contemplating.

[Sam Taggart]

Which is why we are both contemplating.

[George Severis]

Oh, God, what will it be?

[Sam Taggart]

And what I'm struggling with is like, I wish I had a good one.

[George Severis]

I know. Oh, right, totally. Yeah, that's definitely what I'm struggling with as well.

[Sam Taggart]

Because, you know, sometimes I'm okay with being like, whatever.

[George Severis]

I'm just thinking, no, no, no. I want. I want. I want a bang.

[Sam Taggart]

I want substance.

[George Severis]

I know. I want substance too.

[Sam Taggart]

And. And yet I don't have it.

[George Severis]

What's up, freaks and losers? I want to give a shout out to substance. That's right. Saying something and having it have gravity, having it have meaning and having it have lasting power. Much like Lord Solar Power saying something that will age well because it's not directly commenting on the culture of the time. It's not a response to something and it's not reactive. It is something that is a fully formed idea that is ahead of its time and that is going to, at some point create a paradigm shift that will then lead to more substance. And in that sense, it's also generative. So shout out to. If you open your mouth, try to say something with substance rather than without substance.

[Sam Taggart]

Wow, that's awesome.

[George Severis]

Yeah.

[Sam Taggart]

Okay, I've got one.

[George Severis]

Okay, go.

[Sam Taggart]

What's up, freak lizards and perverts around the globe? I want to give a huge shout out to my physical therapy. I have been doing physical therapy for my back, and this woman knows my body more than anyone on earth. I'm learning stretches that you wouldn't even believe. And guess what? They are effective. And I'm saying, why aren't we taught this? Open our schools. We need to learn how to stretch properly. Did you know I've been. When you bend down to reach your toes, I've been doing it wrong my whole life. And you're like, how can you bend down wrong? It's possible I was bending from my back and not from my pelvis. And guess what? I've never been able to touch my toes. And that's why. Isn't that crazy? Anyway, I think when we are more in touch with our bodies, we will finally be free and living in Lorde's solar power universe. So shout out to my physical therapist. I love you, xoxo Sam Woo.

[Liam Bensby]

Hi, freaks. I want to shout out the autoplay feature on television streaming because I need. I Need to just leave the TV on for my dog when I leave so that he doesn't have a panic attack. And then wait. And then one other thing. This is truly in the moment, as you can tell, because it's dull. But speaking of physical therapy, I want to shout out to the guy in my yoga class that left in the middle and said, this is too hard. To the class. I love bravery. Yeah, that's. That's like freak behavior. That's really cool.

[George Severis]

Shout out.

[Sam Taggart]

Shout out.

[George Severis]

Was he gay or straight?

[Liam Bensby]

Straight.

[George Severis]

See, I love that. Being able to admit defeat.

[Sam Taggart]

Was it hot yoga?

[Liam Bensby]

Hot yoga? Yeah, sometimes they turn it way too.

[Sam Taggart]

Sometimes there's panic there.

[Liam Bensby]

There's panic. I don't know if it's actually healthy.

[Sam Taggart]

Yeah, I question it as well, but I've definitely wanted to run out before. Did the teacher get mad? I feel like they always say, like. And whatever you do, don't let. Don't leave the room if you're, you know, lie down.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah. No, she didn't comment on it.

[Sam Taggart]

Wow.

[Liam Bensby]

I know.

[Sam Taggart]

Hello, police.

[George Severis]

Yeah, he's now dead. And she.

[Liam Bensby]

And she was pregnant.

[George Severis]

The teacher was pregnant.

[Liam Bensby]

The teacher was pregnant. Baby gun.

[Sam Taggart]

Baby. Gonna be hot.

[George Severis]

Oh, my God. Is that safe for not to police pregnant women's bodies, but get out of there.

[Liam Bensby]

No. Yoga worms is like a different thing entirely. Shout out yoga worms. Yeah, shout out yoga worms.

[George Severis]

You guys did that.

[Sam Taggart]

You did that. You ate. You ate. Well, thanks so much for doing the pod.

[Liam Bensby]

Thank you for having me.

[George Severis]

And once again, please tell people.

[Liam Bensby]

Yeah, listen to my record and his splash band. And I'm cooking right now, so stay tuned.

[George Severis]

Ooh, she's cooking.

[Sam Taggart]

She's cooking. Okay, see you at Jack Anselm's hospital bed. Bye. Podcast ends now.

[George Severis]

Want more? Subscribe to our Patreon for two extra episodes a month. Discord Access and more by heading to patreon.com Stradiolab and for all our visual learners.

[Sam Taggart]

Free full length video episodes are available on our YouTube.

[George Severis]

Now get back to work.

[Sam Taggart]

Stradiolab is a production by Will Ferrell's Big Money players network and iHeart podcasts.

[George Severis]

Created and hosted by George Severis and.

[Sam Taggart]

Sam Taggart, executive produced by Will Ferrer, Ferrell Hansani and Olivia Aguilar.

[George Severis]

Co produced by Bay Wang.

[Sam Taggart]

Edited and engineered by Adam Avalos.

[George Severis]

Artwork by Michael Fails and Matt Grubb.

[Sam Taggart]

Theme music by Ben Kling.

[Bowen Yang]

This is Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers from Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang. This podcast is sponsored by PayPal. All right, readers, Katie's publicist finalist Kyle's it's time to talk about one of the most iconic payment that's right, it's PayPal. PayPal lets you do you meaning you can pay your own way. PayPal offers people flexibility on how they can pay. Once you click the PayPal button, you can choose from a bunch of payment options, including paying later with PayPal at millions of online stores. Iconic Pay in store, pay online, pay overtime. Don't just pay PayPal. Learn [e-mail] when things get intense, stress.

[Liam Bensby]

Sweat can't be far behind.

[George Severis]

So let Dove Men plus Care and a Perspirants help you stay calm when life gets a little uncomfortable. Like when you're sitting in the front.

[Liam Bensby]

Row in an inside Salt comic starts working the crowd.

[George Severis]

All you can do is smile and laugh along with the comedian. Dove Men Care Antiperspirants help tackle stress, sweat and odor causing bacteria so you can get comfortable with the uncomfortable.

[Liam Bensby]

Fight back against stress sweat with Dove.

[George Severis]

Men Care Antiperspirants available at Walmart, Target and Amazon.

[Bowen Yang]

You don't know me yet, but I bet we have something in common. We all wish we were better functioning humans. Humans maybe figure out how to sleep.

[Colby Ekowitz]

Better, have more meaningful relationships, cook more that search for practical knowledge.

[Bowen Yang]

It's my job at the Washington Post.

[Colby Ekowitz]

I host a podcast called Try this.

[Bowen Yang]

Every episode is like an audio class and we learn together. I'm Christina Quinn. Now you know me. Check out Try this wherever you're listening.

[Colby Ekowitz]

Did you know? Women are more likely than men to develop dry eyes, which may be due to hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle or after menopause and the use of oral contraceptives. Give your dry burning or irritated eyes a daily refresh With Refresh Optive Mega 3 Lubricant Eye Drops, a preservative free formula that provides fast acting, lasting relief. Refresh Optive Mega 3 is safe to use as often as needed. Find Refresh online or in the eye drop aisle at all major retailers.

[George Severis]

You're listening to an I Heart podcast.